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POLITICO 44

CANTON, Ohio — Before Congress left town for the spring recess, Speaker Nancy Pelosi urged rank-and-file Democrats to return home and tout the benefits of the landmark health care bill.

But instead of barnstorming their districts celebrating their historic accomplishment, some have been content to remain beneath the radar, reluctant to advertise their role in passing the centerpiece of President Barack Obama’s domestic policy agenda.

Rep. John Boccieri, who represents this conservative area in northeast Ohio, is one of them.

After announcing his intention to vote for the bill in a news conference televised live on CNN two days before the vote, Obama lauded his political courage. The president noted that the freshman Democrat sat “in as tough a district as there is,” a shout-out that prompted a standing ovation from the House Democratic Caucus.

For the past week, however, Boccieri has gone dark, surfacing only last Wednesday night — in New York City — at a cocktail party fundraiser to benefit his reelection campaign. Otherwise, the congressman had no public schedule. A spokeswoman said he was focused on “constituent services.”

Boccieri is not alone. He’s one of a number of House Democrats who’ve kept a low profile over the recess, a group largely defined by the level of political jeopardy they face this fall.

Like Boccieri, they tend to represent highly competitive seats. One of them, Rep. Earl Pomeroy (D-N.D.), has not held any events in Republican-oriented North Dakota to talk about health care, his staff acknowledged. This week, he’ll talk about Social Security.

The offices of other endangered members, ranging from veterans such as Reps. Alan Mollohan (D-W.Va.) and Allen Boyd (D-Fla.) to junior members such as Reps. Ann Kirkpatrick (D-Ariz.) and John Salazar (D-Colo.), did not return messages asking about how they had promoted health care last week.

In Ohio, Boccieri faced trouble no matter what course he took. Republicans were already planning to seize on his flip from a "no" vote last November to a much-ballyhooed "yes" vote in March. Now they frame him as unwilling to answer tough questions.

“His back flip on health care simply dumps fuel on a fire that no amount of special-interest money or pats on the back from Speaker Pelosi will be able to put out,” said Jim Renacci, the front-runner in the 16th District’s contested Republican primary. “I think he knows that people are mad as hell, … and I think that concerns him.”

Local Democratic leaders think it’s politically smart for the former Air Force Reserve pilot to fly under the radar — at least until the situation cools down.

“Let it simmer,” said Johnnie Maier, former chairman of the Stark County Democratic Party and a power broker in Canton politics. “Initially, you get a visceral response from people. Let that die down a little bit, and then go out when people are getting settled into the thing and then begin to talk with them.”

The chairman of the Democratic Party in Ashland County, Steve Johnson, acknowledged that the congressman’s vote is “a tough sell” here that “will probably hurt him a little bit overall.”

Ashamed of what they've done they slyly slink home in the dark of night hoping nobody will call them out over their dastardly deeds. Unfortunately for them that won't work. The internet and their challengers will make their onerous perfidy well know, they'll become famous, an overnight sensation at the precincts...in November! I hope they actually do try and keep their secret from their constitutients then their treachery will be doubly exposed. Why would they be ashamed of what they so blatantly and unquestionably supported on the House floor?

Now why would these folks want to keep a low profile? Aren't they proud of their vote? Why Ms. Pelosi told us we needed to have the bill passed so we could find out what was in it and these people helped; make that happen. Now we can see what is in the bill. Oh my, how thoughtless of me, that's the problem isn't it. I guess you had better keep a low profile

But instead of barnstorming their districts celebrating their historic accomplishment, some have been content to remain beneath the radar, reluctant to advertise their role in passing the centerpiece of President Barack Obama’s domestic policy agenda

The dems are keeping a low profile because they know they pushed threw a bogus piece of legislation to help bolster a failing unqualified president's polling numbers. The next thing will be to push threw amnesty for the uncounted illegal (criminal) immigrants just in time to register and add them to the ever growing group of dependent democrat voters.

The only thing bi-partisan about this bill was it's opposition.

November cannot come soon enough, time to clean these lifelong politicians out of office.

All of the tea party people that I know are employed and hard working folks that just want the Government to butt out of their life's. They are not a bunch of free loaders like the Libs that I see in the Press, members of unions that destroy companies like General Motors, and then are rewarded with the ownership of the company.

My rep is a dem who voted for this travesty. Try to get anyone in his office to answer the phone? Not. Any meetings scheduled? Not. e-mail will not go through? This is democracy? Not. Yet the idiot sends me a form letter praising the $250 for my doughnut hole while raising my taxes by 10's of thousands of dollars. Yeah like I won't work against him and his allies in Nov!